


Drown

by BigBadBat



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Hanahaki Disease, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, I PROMISE ONLY LIGHT ANGST, I give up, I promise this is my redemption, I still need to set the plot, In which Shiro get's fucked by life, Keith is super chill, Light Angst, M/M, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings, but i will write the end of the series, moderated angst, mother and son reunion, okay maybe some real angst but not heavy angst, starting from chapter 3, the rest will be somehow fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-16
Updated: 2018-10-08
Packaged: 2019-05-18 13:46:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14853923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BigBadBat/pseuds/BigBadBat
Summary: Keith recovered in a matter of seconds after two years of being frozen in a healing pod. When Allura and Pidge break the news that his vitals have gone back to normal and the flowers disappeared. As they rush to the room, no one dares to question why. They are just happy to have their friend back... But who stepped out of that freezing chamber?





	1. Broken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you read Lost, this is an immediate sequel to what happened there. If you didn't, don't worry, I'll explain in the next chapter :D

"Lance! Remember the tracker Allura and I carry around to know if there is any change in Keith's vitals! It just cleared everything and his health is back to normal! It happened in a matter of seconds," Pidge said, shoving the panel to Lance's nose.

"What!?"

"I'll go tell Allura and Shiro! You get Coran and Hunk!" Was the last thing she said before she actually ran off the room. 

Lance stood there, in the green lion's hangar, speechless, still trying to process what his girlfriend had told him. it was impossible. After two years Keith suddenly came back in a second? Lance let out a victory scream before rushing to the... part of the castle where the engines were (he hangs out with Pidge and helps her color-code her algorithms, which turned out to be fun and interesting, not with the engineers; he didn't know how to call that metal place).

"Lance? What happened?" asked Hunk as he stood up, Coran looking over his own shoulder, amused at the sight of _overly_ -over-excited Lance.

"Keith is healed, let's go!" Lance yelled before he turned around and ran to the healing room, hearing footsteps behind him.

Soon, in their trajectory, they ran into Pidge and Allura.

"Where's Shiro?" asked Hunk panting but refusing to slow down, they had to cross the entire castle but he didn't care. Keith was finally okay.

"He rushed out of his room like a lightning bolt, I'm pretty sure he is  _way_ ahead of us," Allura answered, making sure she wouldn't trip with her dress and wiping the sweat off her forehead with her other sleeve.

"He was smiling!" Pidge yelled at the top of her lungs, happy to finally see their leader show emotion after two years. 

They arrived at the healing room to find the door open and Shiro leaning his forehead against the glass, which held Keith like a pretty doll with his hair floating in whatever it was inside, Shiro's fists at the sides of his head, gritting teeth and crying. Tears of joy. Allura smiled and put her hand on Shiro's arm, instructing him to stand back so Keith wouldn't fall over him (Shiro wouldn't have minded). Everyone held their breathe while Allura instructed the pod to open; Shiro immediately caught Keith's unconscious body in his arms, gently cupping his cheek with his flesh hand, giving the brightest smile at his best friend, the one he loved with his whole heart. Slowly, Keith opened his eyes and looked dizzy his eyes traveling around the room and brow frowning and then staring back at Shiro with a puzzled look. Keith, noticing the arm around his waist and the hand on his cheek, the eager looks in the room and the bright lights pushed Shiro away and crawled to the back of the room until his back was against the wall, bending his knees to his chest and covering his torso and head with crossed arms. Shiro took a step forward and Keith tensed up, letting out a cry.

"It's okay, Keith, I will never hurt you," Shiro said, resting his hand on Keith's shoulder, making him writhe.

Finally, Keith looked up to Shiro's eyes.

"Who is Keith? Who are you?"


	2. Loneliness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> owo

"Keith?" Asked Pidge, reaching out to comfort her confused friend, but when his eyes turned from frightened to wide in terror she stopped and took a step back, her back hitting Lance's chest. He reassured her embracing her.

"Who is Keith?" He asked, scanning the room and staring at his hands and bare chest. His heart was beating, his eyes could see and he could speak almost perfectly. 

"What do you mean?" Asked the girl Keith had taken for a grandmother, but she actually looked about his age with white hair and a stunning dark skin with markings in her cheekbones. She was breathtaking, bending on with her hands on her knees and a warm smile on her face, looking at him in the eye. "Don’t worry, I’ll get you a glass of water and tell your mother you woke up. You should rest," she said as she disappeared and left him with the other five guys in the room. 

"Who... who am I?" He asked once again, confused. What was he doing there? What was this place? How did he end up there? Who were this guys? "Where is my mom? Where is my dad?" He asked standing up, eyes searching the room for a familiar face. A boy with glasses triggered some kind of memory, but it was like a punch in the stomach, knocking the air out of his body and giving him a headache that made him pull his bangs and whine. 

"You are Keith Kogane," said the boy standing almost in front of him, who had an awful scar across his nose and an extra he white bang contrasting his dark hair. "Focus on your name and try to remember anything," he said, catching Keith when he tried to take a step forward. "I am Shiro, I need you to trust me, okay?"

And he had a smile that reminded him of a million sunsets he had never seen. He felt another wave of pain rushing through his brain, more intense and longer. He wanted to remember and his mind was urging him to. He knew that guy. He knew Shiro was kind and caring. He knew the warmth of his embrace. He knew how much he had trusted him in the past. But he couldn’t remember why. He knew he had seen those warm brown eyes somewhere, but they were lost in the mist of his thoughts, every memory he could pull together was painful. He could barely remember how to speak or walk. Maybe he didn’t remember how to walk that well, when he took another step forward and this time Shiro hugged him, holding him in place so he wouldn’t fall to the ground.

"Hey Keith, do you feel better now?" Said the girl with white hair entering the room with a glass filled with a transparent liquid. "It has been two years, so we have a lot to tell you. Kolivan found your mother, her name is Krolia, Pidge found Matt and he is leading the rebels, her dad went back to earth with some blueprints and..."

"Who is she?! Why are your ears pointy? They are hideous," he said with a pout, interrupting her.

"PAYBACK! Gimme five Keith!" Yelled an over-enthusiastic guy mocking the lady.

"Not the moment, Lance," Shiro scolded him.

"Why is her face painted? Is she someone's grandma? Who is the ginger? Who is Kolivan?"

"Keith, what's the last thing you remember?" asked Shiro gently, helping him guide the glass to his mouth with his trembling hands.

"I was lost... I drowned," he stated, face growing even paler. "I drowned and the sky disappeared and so did I. I don't know where I was..."

"It looks like you lost your memories! What a mess it is!" said the main with the mustache. "Well, figures we should introduce ourselves; I am Coran, from─"

"Coran, maybe your name is just enough, we do not wish to confuse him further at the moment," said the small guy with the glasses. "That's Coran, he talks a lot. I'm Pidge and this is Lance; the nervous wreck is Hunk and Allura is not a grandma she just has white hair and eventually you'll get to the part where she has that marks. You were asleep for more than two years and since you were alone with your thoughts while your body was frozen, you may have blocked your own memories. It's okay, we can find a way to reverse it, especially when my brother Matt arrives. You, Matt and Shiro used to be friends since you entered the Galaxy Academy, let's say you studied to be a pilot."

"Like an astronaut?" he asked, raising one eyebrow. "WAIt, two years? How is that even possible?"

Everyone made funny faces.

"Yes, kinda like an astronaut..." said Lance.

" _I slept for two years?_ " he almost yelled, but his voice was still weak.

"Technically you were frozen, Captain America style," added Lance, and Pidge elbowed him in the ribs. "We did it to save your life."

Keith had a confused look and brow frowned. He had been frozen two years, shirtless and with a fading scar on his chest? How was that even possible? But it explained why he was freezing and trying to cuddle the guy holding him. He hadn't realized he was shaking until then when he slowly and steadily held onto Shiro to stay warm.

"Who are you? Why are you so... warm?" he whispered, blushing and pressing his cheek closer to Shiro's chest.

"I am Shiro," he repeated patiently since Keith had lost his memory it was natural that he was still dizzy and confused. 

"I know your name is Shiro, but who are you? Who were you to me?" Keith asked, swallowing as he stared at Shiro's eyes.

He knew him. He had trusted this man, he could feel it in his bones. Being held like that; the tight embrace he didn't remember but was familiar with.

"Are you my brother?" Keith asked, thinking that maybe he was his family and that's why he felt safe by his side.

"Uhhh, I'm gonna prepare Keith something to eat," said Hunk, awkwardly, "You must be hungry, right?"

Keith slightly nodded, eyes glued to the ground.

"I should go receive your mom, it would be unpolite no to do so, and we have to fill her in about what happened to you," said Pidge. 

"My mom?"

"It's okay, even before you were frozen you didn't know her, this will be your first encounter," said Lance, trying to lift Keith's mood. "I mean, when she found you she did come to visit you but ya' know, you were a popsicle."

"What's a popsicle?" Keith asked and the innocence and curiosity in his voice almost made Shiro pass out.

"Let's go receive her," urged Pidge, pulling the other boy with him.

"Worry not, I also fail to grasp the concept of a popsicle," reassured the girl with white hair, Allura.

Keith gave her half a smile.

"Shiro, mind helping me walk Keith to his room?" she said grabbing Keith's arm.

"I can walk," Keith said weakly. He had slept for two years, why was he so sleepy? His eyelids weighed a ton and he could barely feel his limbs.

Allura was not sure if Keith would be stubborn in his current state, so she simply kept her hand on his arms.

"Let's go, you must be cold," said Coran.

"I am not," Keith admitted.

"Still, you should put a shirt on to meet your mom," said Shiro with a wink.

"Yes, it would be unwell-mannered to receive Madam Krolia half naked!" added Coran. "I'll go make sure Pidge and Lance manage to ease your mother instead of freaking her out! Pidge sure looks excited and happy but she is still a bit lose with her tongue, and Lance actually tried to hit on your mom when he first met her! It is hilarious how galra age and not showing any change!"

"Coran!" yelled both Shiro and Allura.

Allura sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. 

"I'll take Coran away, you can handle this, right?" she asked, looking at Shiro. 

Coran pouted and left the room in his free will, knowing that if he stayed he would only confuse the paladin further; he managed to confuse him with his memories so without them he could blow his mind ─almost literally; he might as well prepare a room for their guest while at it.

"Pidge is a girl?" he asked softly. It did make sense, she may use loose clothing and hair tied up in a bun he didn't notice until she left the room. "Of course she is," he said hanging his head and pressing his palm against his face. "Why did he hit on my mo... never mind, my instinct tells me I don't want to know." He lifted his head and looked at Shiro, he seemed trustworthy so he felt more at ease asking him what was going on than to the others. He was almost sure he was his brother. "What's a galra?" he asked, eyes wide.

He remembered the word, floating away and out of his reach; he was a galra, but what did that mean? He remembered a few nationalities, names given to people born in different places from the world, mexicans, koreans, french... but something in his gut told him galra was not a place, it meant something else. It was certainly not a religion, he had never trusted a big guy in the sky watching over everyone or something like that; galra was something extraordinary and Keith wasn't sure if it was a good or a bad thing. It was something that defined him in some way, part of he was. Just like the guy holding him so he wouldn't fall. And everyone who had been there with worried looks when he came back to his senses. They meant something to him and in some way, defined him; a second family or distant relatives? it didn't seem likely. He felt as if his head was about to explode and fell to his knees, panting.

"What's wrong?" asked the girl with a worrisome look, kneeling down and putting her hand on his back. "Do your chest or throat ache?"

"No... But my head does. It want's me to remember," he said as tears formed in his eyes. "There's someone else in my head..."

"Could it be...?" Shiro asked, exchanging glances with Allura.

"Maybe it's Red," she said and helped Keith get to his knees. He had his eyes closed and his hands in tight fists in his forehead. "Keith, be at ease, that second presence in your mind might be someone you had a strong link with, she may be trying help you regain your memories," she said, caressing his hair. "She will not hurt you."

"Who is she?" he asked through his gritted teeth.

"Uh... Someone powerful that cares about you, her name is Red. She saved your life and was the one who took you to the sea of stars; she meant no harm and surely did not intend for you to lose your memory," said Allura. "I will ask Lance to talk with Red, maybe he can get her out of Keith's head so his memories come back naturally instead of being forced back."

Shiro nodded and held Keith tight, carrying him in bridal style. God he had missed his eyes, his hair, his smile. His smile. That half-hearted smile he was giving him with dizzy eyes as he rested his head on Shiro's shoulder. Shiro felt his heart melt.

"I..." he hesitated, unsure of why he had the urge to said those words. "It's good to be back."

Shiro eyes glimpsed and Keith saw a thousand stars in them. He smiled back and pressed a kiss to his forehead.

"It's good to have you back," Shiro responded, even if he knew Keith didn't remember. Even if he was already asleep.

He was not thrilled about this, he had hoped for Keith to step out just as stubborn and strong as he was. He had wanted the man he was in love with to have been spared from his disease because his love was no longer unrequited. But he had to adapt. He had caused him so much pain without noticing how close to death he dragged Keith because he was oblivious, stupid and in denial; it took him seven hundred forty-two times reading the same letter and about seven hundred and sixty days to realize Keith was not his brother, or maybe he was, but he could love him as a brother and as a lover at the same time. The first days he could not bear to read the letter Keith had given him (left for him) and acknowledge that he had put Keith in a freezer, but as he read it over and over again his memories, thought, dreams and daydreams were the ones with he wished he had spent with Keith, how much he missed him; sometimes he would lie awake staring at the ceiling asking himself if he would be hurt the same way if it were someone else, but he knew it wouldn't. He loved everyone in the Voltron team but something was different with Keith. And it wasn't until one day that Lance and Pidge fell asleep over him and his hands were tangled in both's hair that he realized he was not thinking of the couple, he was imagining it was him and Keith embraced by the stars and together, closer than friends, more than brothers. He loved him the same way lovers did. 

The head of Voltron was a stupid mess. Seven years. He had had Keith in his life for seven years and not once he imagined that boy hiding behind a couch could be the person he was meant to be with. Keith had loved him in a way that made flowers bloom in his chest, red roses, beautiful flowers choking him; maybe this time Shiro would be the one to suffer, and he felt he deserved it. He had never deserved Keith's love, it was only fair that he had forgotten of Shiro and his feelings for him; he was not worth all that pain, he couldn't possibly deserve such a soft and kind heart.

Keith's room was tidy and without a single puff of dust to be seen. The other didn't know that when he couldn't sleep he would go to Keith's room and clean it, order his clothes a million times, telling himself he should keep the room nice for when Keith woke up. Every now and then he washed his clothes, changed his bed's cover. Talked to the Red Lion, asking her how was Keith and never receiving an answer. If he had known. If only he had been the one stuck in the astral plane for two years all alone, if he had been the one to lose himself; to go through such a painful process of self-destruction due to the loneliness. He tried to visit Keith more than once, but even in there he couldn't see him, it was as if he had vanished. He closed his mind and soul and eventually, the demons he should have let go made their way to his heart and destroyed everything he once was.

But now he was alive and safe and in his arms, breathing without any problem and peacefully staring at nothing. He had no memory of the pain he had experienced. And deep inside his chest, Shiro was somehow glad, because now he could meet Keith all over again and even fall in love again with him. He could love this new Keith, he already did, but he knew the chance of him falling in love that hard again was high; it was the same guy that drove him crazy and made him go head over heels and if he had fallen for him once he would be glad for the chance of falling in love with this new persona. 

However, he was also scared, what would happen when Keith regained his memory? He had almost a thousand reasons to hate him and despise him for all the problems and pain Shiro had caused him. It would be understandable if they never talked again and were strangers. And if he didn't regain his memories, he would eventually find out what had happened and every chance Shiro had to finally be together with him could also banish. Even if he was the one to tell him the whole story and he didn't learn it the hard way, he would have the right to hate him. His naivety had frozen him for two years until he committed metal-suicide and drowned in darkness and loneliness.

"What are you thinking about?"

Keith's innocent voice pulled him back together. He was to enjoy the moment and make the best of it. Shiro smiled at him.

"How difficult it's going to be to get you back on track," he said, hiding the part where his guilt laid. "Especially given our situation."

"What's our situation?" Keith asked, finally on his feet.

His eyes searched his room and he turned and turned trying to recognize something, anything.

"Get a shirt," he muttered, trying to keep the voice in his head together. 

Keith started opening almost every drawer and closet until he stumbled across his paladin armor. He took a step back, frowning.

"Something wrong?" asked Shiro, concerned when Keith froze and tensed up. God, he was so skinny.

"I recognize that," he said gulping, his voice trembling. He reached out and touched the red form in the chest of the armor, feeling something, he couldn't find the words to describe it but he felt something. "What does that mean?" he asked looking at Shiro over his shoulder.

"It's a bit too much for you right now, but it's a V, I think," Shiro had never questioned if it was actually a V from Voltron or just an altean form or something, but in his mind the V made sense. "Your shirts are on the second drawer to your left and the jacket is hanging in the other closet," he instructed.

Keith grabbed his shirt and messily tried to put it on, and it took him a few moments to realize his head should go through the bigger hole and the small ones were for his arms. Then he found his jacket. The one Keith loved and wore almost every single moment.

He grimaced.

"This is mine?" he asked, a bit disgusted. "It's hideous, it's half a jacket with a weird collar!" he explained himself. 

Shiro laughed.

"You love that jacket!" he said while laughing.

Keith rolled his eyes and threw the jacket in the bed.

"What's with that knife? Is it mine?" he said, holding it with care in his hands.

"Yes, it was your mother's, your dad gave it to you."

Keith held the knife to his chest to then hang it on his belt. It made him feel safe.

"Whatever, I should go greet my mom."

 _Your alien purple huge mom._ Shiro bit his lip. This was going to be either hilarious or a mess. Or a hilarious mess.

"Your mom and you... _don't exactly look alike_ , I mean, you have her eyes and uh, hair, and the demeanor, you both are a tad intimidating─"

"I am not intimidating, I can barely walk without your help and I'm sure I could pass out at any moment now, and I am dying inside." Keith walked out of the room, stubbornness was clearly still there, boy, he still had to have the last word.

Shiro smiled at Keith with a grin.

"Well, now who's being imposing?" he asked coyly.

Keith blushed and crossed his arms.

"Just take me to my mom," he said, pouting.

"My pleasure."

The walked in silence to the castle's bridge, that's where almost everything relevant went down and they gathered for everything.

"This place is huge, where are we?" Keith asked, staring front and backward, noticing he couldn't see the end or beginning of the hallway. "What is this place?"

Shiro scratched his nape nervously.

"We are in a castle, uh, The Castle of Lions," he said, tentatively.

Keith looked at him and raised his eyebrows.

"That's an amazing name!" he said, pressing his hand against the wall as they walked.

"It is pretty cool," Shiro agreed, unsure if he should mention that it was named after five robotic lions from which Keith had piloted two and formed a giant robot to save the universe from an evil empire of aliens that were the same race as his mom. Who and how would they tell Keith how they ended up in a galaxy not even Pidge could pronounce correctly. An alien castle and three aliens on board.

Shiro noticed Keith staring at him, or well his arm, no, at him, scanning him with curiosity and mischieve.

"What happened to your arm? Why is it metallic? It looks really cool! Does it have anything to do with your scar? Why do you only have a puff on white hair and the rest is white?" he bombarded him with questions, reminding him of a child.

"I lost my arm in a fight and got a metal one to replace it," he said nervously. He was going to skip the part in which he was captured and experimented on for the moment. "My scar... uh, it was an accident." Technically it wasn't a lie, he had accidentally distracted himself in the ring and failed to dodge his opponent's blade. "And I dyed my hair because..." _c'mon Shiro, think of something fast._ "I felt like it."

Keith stared at him and smiled.

"Cool."

Shiro was glad he had dropped the conversation, he wasn't sure for how long he could keep up with the lies and hiding stuff from Keith.

Once they reached the bridge's door, Shiro hesitated. Keith was about to see the stars closer than he possibly remembered, he had shown no expression or sign of knowing he was in the middle of the space and that his mom was purple.

"Eh, Keith," he called out before Keith opened the door.

"Yes?"

Those eyes were going to be the death to him.

"Try to be open-minded, okay?" he asked.

"Okie-dokie."

Oh dear God, Keith was a toddler. And Shiro's Achilles' heel only second to original-Keith's smile. 

They opened the doors and Keith's jaw fell open in awe.

"We are in the middle of the space! Where is earth? Dear Lord the stars are beautiful!" he exclaimed, rushing to the glass to see the stars even closer. Allura, Pidge, Shiro, and Krolia didn't know how to react. Keith turned around and faced them with a bright smile on his face. "Mom?" he asked, locking eyes with Krolia.

Said woman smiled and rushed to hug her son tightly, making his backbone crack and causing him to let out a yelp.

"My boy, you have grown so much! Look at you! You look almost like your father! Your eyes are still so kind..." she said cupping her son's face in her hands, holding him close to her body.

"Wait, your mom is purple and you just... accept it?" asked Pidge, genuinely confused. 

"Of course I do! I was frozen for two years, I'm in space, one of my friends is an alien princess, my best friend has a metallic arm, and my mom maybe be two heads taller than me but she is beautiful and gentle!" he said, hugging her back with all the strength he had.

"Keith... I missed you so much," she said, pressing her cheek on Keith's head, tangling her fingers in her son's hair, tears forming in her eyes. "When Kolivan told me he had found my son I rushed my mission to come to you but when I arrived at the base and he sent me here and it was too late... You were already frozen and I couldn't do anything about it... But now you are here and I won't leave you again," she said, her voice trembling as she cried embracing her son. He was warm and happy to see her. 

When Princess Allura told her that Keith had lost all her memories she had been a bit thrown aback, maybe he hadn't actually met her but what if he didn't remember he was a half-breed? She was scared he would be frightened or rejected her. But he simply accepted her and cried too.

"Mom... I'm happy to finally meet you," he whispered, sobbing. "You... You will stay, right? They told me you were away but─"

"It's okay Keith, I'll stay as long as you need me to," she reassured him.

His mom was beautiful, she had gentle eyes and a soft smile, little fangs that he could see when she spoke, and Shiro was right, their hair looked almost the same. Even wearing that battle armor she was beautiful. He had his mom by his side and for a moment, he forgot he lost his memories and lost himself in her embrace, hearing her heartbeat and drowning in her warmth.

"Are we telling him about Voltron now?" asked Pidge again.

"Not now Pidge," scolded Allura and Shiro in unison.

"Well, we should go dine!" Allura added. "Hunk is an excellent cook, Keith, he manages to make you earthlings enjoy the castle's food!" she said with a wink.

"He is," complimented Krolia. "The night I stayed here he made a delicious dish. He and Katie also helped me get drunk to get over the fact you were frozen but that's a story for after dinner."

"Katie?"

"Me," said Pidge. "My real name is Katie."

"But only Lance can call her that~" sang Allura, mocking the couple.

"Let's go grab something to eat before Keith passes out," said Shiro, rolling his eyes.

 It was good having him back. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [ Yell with me about Season 6 ](https://paladorksinlove.tumblr.com)


	3. IS KALTERNECKER OKAY? ─Lance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anyways from now on the chapters will be out of context lines and the name of whoever says it.  
> Heavy dialogue and crack, I LOLed my way into this lmao.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [ FUCK MIDTERMS AM I RIGHT ](https://paladorksinlove.tumblr.com)  
>   
> 
> ///Suicide TW   
> Okay so I know I kinda abandoned this and I want to apologize because I wanted to keep on writing this but I was interned because a psychotic episode that went awful, I sincerely hope none of you have even the slightest idea of what a psychiatric hospital is like but a quick summary: under watch 24/7 and kinda doped, so no writing (or connection with the world at all). ;; but I'm finally free and the updates will be coming!

Dinner was a mess, so Krolia figured she might as well take her son away from that odd battlefield and get to know this version of him. They told her he was someone entirely different right now, that he was usually a bit more... grown up? Her son was a 22-year-old toddler. They had discussed the age thing.

 

_"Keith is 18, Lance. He didn't age," Pidge had pointed at him with her spoon, making Keith laugh._

_"First of all, he was 20 when we froze him," Shiro stated, giggling. "You guys barely keep trace of our birthdays, don't you?"_

_"How do you know it had been two years? Why weren't we told about this?" Lance demanded._

_"I taught Shiro how to read our clocks and the conversion to your earthling time!" explained Coran, a tone of sadness in his voice. "He was the only one who actually came to my lesson."_

_"..."_

_"Anyways, Allura, are you 26 or 10,0026?" Hunk asked bluntly._

_"I AM NOT 26! I am 24, and technically I have lived those 10,000 years so... I'd say Keith is 22 now."_

_"You can't mean that princess! I am not 10,062 years old!"_

_"Coran needs to chillax," Hunk said._

_"What's chillax?" Keith asked._

_"..."_

_"Let's roll with 22."_

 

"Mom?" 

"Yes, sweetie?"

"What happened to dad?"

"I... I don't know," replied Krolia, astonished by his son inquiry. 

"Oh right, you left." The words escaped his mouth as if he had just been asked why he didn't do his homework, no bitterness nor anger or sadness. "Why did you leave?" He asked, bright purple eyes looking at her while he played with this thing he randomly summoned called  _bayard_. He found it curious, it was an incomplete circle with gaps equally and symmetrically perfect with a bar in the middle, hints of red all over it.

"To protect you," she answered, pressing a soft kiss to Keith's hair. 

This wasn't how he had expected to reunite with his family but she wasn't complaining. She had her son resting his head on her shoulder and leaning on her back while she peacefully stroked his hair and giggled when he sighed when she wasn't able to answer his question.

He knew he was in space, not even in his galaxy (he still had his doubts on why every galaxy had cool names but his), his mom was a giant purple woman, there was a princess with magical powers described as a Disney princess (What the hell was a Disney) by the goofball Lance is, his best friend has a poof of white hair due to post-traumatic stress disorder and lost his arm and got a replacement while he was held captive by his mom's race but not every galra (cool name and then again, he was an earthling.) was evil because her mom was fighting the mean guys of her own race, Pidge was a gremlin but she was the most patient when it came to his basic questions, Hunk made references and laughed when Keith said he understood the reference, the guy with the moustache could do everything but tasty food, and Pidge had a brother who was not named after an earthling bird.

Oh, and there where magical lions talking to everyone and apparently one of them liked Keith.

"From what, why are the galra evil?"

"There's a war going on because someone with power misused his authority, and I had to make sure it didn't reach earth. I needed to protect you at all cost," she said as calm as she could, holding back her tears and burying her nose in her son's hair.

"Did you miss me?" he asked, hoping she would say yes. 

He may have forgotten his name and almost everything, but when it came to emotions he was more than vulnerable, even if he was confused about  _vulnerability_ as a concept. He felt things and tried to put a name on them.

"Every single day."

"What's that?" He asked, pointing to his mom's gun.

She took it off her belt and gently laid it in her son's hands.

"A Taser Gun," she explained, putting his fingers in place.

"What does it do?" Keith wondered, fingers dancing over the trigger.

"Sends an electric shook to knock someone out," she explained, fake-shooting towards the door.

"Cool," he said, wondering how someone would be knocked out by the weapon.

And just then Lance entered the room with a notice, which they didn't get to hear.

"Hey, guys... AGH!"

"Keith!" Krolia scolded, but her son was fast and had already left the room. With her gun. Oh no.

Without Lance to warn them and Krolia unsure of where her son had run off too, Keith just rolled to wherever the space-wind took him. And his next prey had to be Hunk, who was doing something even the old Keith wouldn't understand.

"Oh, hey man." Hunk smiled and turned around. "What are you doing with that...?"

Moments later a spaceship arrived and Keith stood there, amused by the technology and excited to see what or who was inside the spaceship, not caring about the unconscious guy at his left.

When the doors─ door, opened, a human came out. Keith's shoulders dropped, disappointed. 

"Keith! Good to see you out of that freezer!" Matt said, rushing to hug his friend.

But Keith was a bit surprised and scared about this guy's enthusiasm to get closer to him so he held up the gun, finally getting why people used those. Matt tensed up and his right hand went for his staff, in case he needed it.

"It's me, Matt."

"I don't trust anyone who doesn't live in this castle," he said, trembling.

Then he shot. Matt tried to dodge it and managed to block it with his staff. Matt had never questioned what was his staff made of, but now he knew it was some sort of copper. His body collapsed and now Keith was scared, who was him and why did he know his name? What was a freezer? Poor Coran only wanted to welcome Matthew, but Keith was frightened and when the doors of the hangar so he just shot. Allura easily dodged the second shot and Shiro was the one who suffered because of Allura's quick movements. And still he wasn't knocked out, his arm somehow absorbed the shock and made him giggle but that was it.

When Keith realized he had shot Shiro, he burst into laughter and apologizes.

Then he went limp and dropped the gun. Pidge was right behind him with her bayard glowing with electricity.

"Guys, we are too young to have a son," she sighed. "Except for Krolia and Coran."

"Remember when you said I was like your space dad? This is space karma. Now Keith has seven parents," said Shiro, whistling. "I am his friend, I don't need to parent with him," he remarked with a cocky smirk.

"I believe I speak for everyone aboard this castle when I say this Shiro: shut your quiznack!" Lance managed to say between heavy breathes as if he was about to collapse. "SOMEONE TELL ME: IS KALTERNECKER OKAY?" he yelled before he passed out.

"Shiro?"

"Yes, Pidge?"

"How the fuck did you manage to be a single dad with four children? Because I believe it's gonna take more than eight of us to parent for Keith."

"Langua─ nevermind, you are of age to swear."

"You  _still are_ a single dad!"

"Shut the fuck up and go to your room." 

* * *

"Keith just put on your jacket, you're gonna catch a cold." 

Shiro sighed

"You're gonna catch this fists if you try to get that on me."

"Keith, those aren't fists, that's Spiderman's move."

"We have Spidermen?"

"No no..."

"So there are men and women, and men branch into spider and non-spider? How do female branch? Altean, Galra or Pigeon?" 

"Dear lord, let's freeze some memory back into him," Hunk exclaimed.

* * *

"What's a popsicle?" Keith asked, again.

"Captain America," Hunk replied. "Something frozen with something inside, either a flavor or people."

"What's a Captain America?"

"Greatest superhero ever." Hunk slammed his fist against the table, right hand over his heart.

"Batman," Pidge remarked, unamused by Hunk's choice. 

"Wolverine," said Coran after a moment of silence. "His bones certainly have unique qualities and he gets blades between his fingers, who can top that?"

"Starfire." Allura was smirking. Of course she would choose the super strong alien princess.

"Iron Man, I can't believe you didn't choose the guy who built himself an actual suit with missiles and everything," Matt said, facing Pidge. 

"Raven," added Krolia, coldly. Everyone stared at her. "What? James taught me about DC, he was a nerd."

"Who's James?" 

"Your dad Honey."

"My dad knew Captian America?" 

"No, he's a fictional character."

"So is Iron Marn."

"They are friends. They were until they went into a Civil War. Nonexistent frenemies," Hunk explained.

"Hunk, he has no context," remarked Allura. "It took you months to fill me in with the Marvel Universe..."

"Okay, Keith. Are you Team Captain America or Team Iron Man?" Hunk insisted.

"What?" he asked, rubbing his temples. This was too much for him.

"He doesn't know what you're talking about, he barely remembers his name!" Shiro yelled.

"From Civil War, the movie, which side were you on?" 

Everyone wanted to punch Hunk, but Hunk _needed_ to know what side Keith was on!

"James and I were team Cap, and technically everyone in the blade is team Cap so I'd say Keith is team Cap," Krolia gritted her teeth, urging the end of the conversation.

"He's stiff! He's team Iron Man!"

"He is team Cap," said Allura, on the verge of flipping the table.

"Yup," Pidge supported.

"Wars are stupid, nobody wins but everybody loses something. Civil wars are even worst because they prove lack of ethics." Keith crossed his arms and pouted.

"I think he's Team Iron Man," added Coran, quietly.

"I take no side in any war, wars are stupid." 

"They are not Keith; there's war and hatred because we love and we protect. Two sides of the same coin, son."

* * *

 "What's that?"

"A kitchen knife, be careful..."

"Ouch!"

"I told you to be careful!"

"It looks like a toy!"

"Your childhood worries me!"

"I don't have any child's hood!"

"You. Are. Banned. From. The. Kitchen."

"But I already told you I don't have any child's hood! I haven't done anything wrong!"

"Get out Keith."

"Why do you hate me, Hunk?"

"I don't hate you, but you are annoying me."

"What's a noy?"

"GET OUT!" 

* * *

"So you input sticks and circles in the... thing, figures out what to do with them?"

"It is called coding. This machine is a panel, we enter the information and program it to follow certain protocols when required."

"Pidge, my love, the _Cu  _to my  _ba,_ how the fuck do you expect him to understand that?"

"Oh, can you do any better?"

"Yes. Okay Keith, if Allura looks at you angrily, you leave the room, right?"

"Yes."

"You do so because your brain knows angry Allura equals chaos, but for it to assimilate Allura's anger you had to have experienced the consequences to her anger, right?"

"I guess."

"So, your experience is the code, your brain the machine or panel and the program would be that when Allura is angry you escape."

"Oh, I think I get it!"

"Fuck you, Lance."

"Not with Keith here."

"You motherfucker."

"Why would anyone fuck their mother? Or someone else's mother?"

"I can't believe he forgot his second favorite word." 

* * *

 "So you were born with white hair?"

"Indeed."

"It's like, an alien trademark."

"..."

"... Leave the room, leave the room, leave the ro─" 

* * *

"Hey, lover boy."

"Ma'am! I mean, Miss Krolia! Miss Kogane! Mom! Not my mom, Keith's mom, I mean..."

"Ma'am will do. I wanted to talk to you, Shiro."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [ Hehehe, gimme love ](https://paladorksinlove.tumblr.com)


	4. This is so sad, Alexa play despacito. ─Shiro

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [ ... it's been 84 years... my uni schedule sucks and I'm questioning my sexuality, what's up with y'all? (also send me music recs plz) ](https://paladorksinlove.tumblr.com)

Dua Lipa had three smart rules, but Shiro had another rule that out-ruled those three.

Never, _never, **never**_ , **_never_** stay alone in the same room with the giant mom of your best friend who you almost killed. 

With or without context, the rule made a lot of sense.

So, as expected, Shiro looked calm and composed, but his mind was eating him alive. Because he was going to die; Keith's mom was gonna rip him apart and destroy every single trace of his existence. He had it coming though, he almost killed her son because he was an idiot and put Keith through insufferable pain for apparently years and when she finally reunited with her son he was a popsicle. Krolia was going to kill him. Fair enough.

Maybe she was not going to kill him. Maybe she just wanted to mess with him. The woman was lighthearted and a jock so maybe she was just trying to scare him. She was nailing it if so was the case. Maybe she just had more questions about the lions and decided to ask Shiro instead of Lance because Lance could not look her in the eye since he tried to flirt with her not knowing she was his teammate's mom. But then again Pidge liked talking with her so it made no sense. 

Yes, she was going to kill him. It was the only explanation. 

He whistled, awkwardly. 

"So, uh, Kogane-san..." he tried to start the conversation, fidgeting. 

"Sit," she instructed and Shiro had never moved so fast in his entire life.

He used to find the training deck comforting but now everything seemed like a weapon for a brutal death or a torture instrument. And Krolia looked like both mixed up and enlarged. 

"You must know why I want to talk with you," she said, hands on her hips and eyes fixated on Shiro's, making him look away and nervously scratch the back of his neck. "You and I have a common interest."

_Keeping Keith alive and for that, I must kill you so he doesn't fall in love with you again._

Shiro nodded, waiting for the killer blow.

"We both want Keith to be happy."

_So get ready because I will break your neck in the name of the past two years he spent frozen because of you._

"Which is why thanks to Katie filling me in, I came to a conclusion," Shiro could have sworn she had a blade for tongue because the edge on her voice was driving him insane.

_You must pay for my son's heart with your blood in a one to one battle. Victory or death._

"We should..."

_Fight to the death._

"For Keith's sake, of course," she continued.

_You shall die._

"Feel free to kill me!" yelled Shiro as he dropped to his knees and looked down.

Krolia's idea died in her tongue...

"I was going to say that, uh, I could actually..." now the awkward one was her.

Why would Shiro want her to kill him? She knew he felt somehow guilty but, dead? Poor kid, he was messed up.

"Oh my, we have a type," she shushed and sat down next to where Shiro should be. "Don't embarrass yourself, sit down Shiro."

Shiro did as told, carefully.

"Looks like he inherited my type, beefcakes with scars but dorky and awkward. You kinda remind me of James," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. Immediately Shiro tensed and Krolia sighed. "Calm down. If I wanted you dead you'd already be floating in the space."

_Reassuring._

"Anyways, you need a wingman."

"WhAT?"

"Well, wingwoman, even if the word doesn't exist but there is that thing called feminism that says everything can be female or male but I really don't care so I can be your wingman or wingwoman, whatever, gender is such an earthling concept but anyways, the point here is─"

"Rewind a bit! You... what?" asked Shiro, astonished.

Krolia sighed, raising her hands from her tights and gesturing as she spoke.

"You and James are a tad similar; both are strong, sexy and oblivious," she exclaimed as she clapped her hands and gestured a headache. "So, Keith likes you─ he is in love with you." Krolia talked as if she was explaining to a three-year-old. "But he has no memory of that. However, he will eventually get his memories back and when he does, he needs to know you feel the same way. This would be easier if he wasn't a toddler but we have to adapt and improvise. He thinks of you as a brother but you are in love with him. So, I'm saying, you need someone to put you in another perspective from his eyes and I could be that someone. Your friend Lance is too sloppy, Princess Allura is already stressed enough, Katie would but let's give her a break, Hunk barely stands our toddler and that friend of yours... Matthew, he doesn't seem cut out for the task." She placed both her hands on his shoulders and looked at him in the eye. "I recognize that soulmates shenanigans a mile away because of James and as Keith's mom is my duty to make sure he is happy; being with you will make him happy. Do you wanna hear my plan?"

Shiro had been speechless a few times in his life. Now he was almost heartbeat-less. 

"I thought you wanted to kill me."

"Makes, sense," she admitted. 

"So, you think Keith will come to like me again?"

"Honey, he already likes you, but he hasn't quite grasped the concept of romance." 

* * *

"So, your mother is not an alien?" Keith asked once again.

The siblings sighed, a little exasperated. 

"Or your dad?"

"No Keith, it is not usual for humans to have alien relatives," said Matt, pressing his fingers to his temples. "You really are one of a kind."

Keith stayed silent as he pondered which would be his next question.

"Why are some people warm and others cold?" he asked as he tilted his head, putting his right hand over Pidge's and the left over Matt's.

"I can answer that," Pidge said, fixing her glasses. In the beginning, they were just part of her costume but by now she really needed them and couldn't go more than a few hours without them before a headache made her cranky. "Much like a thermostat regulates the temperature inside the castle, the hypothalamus (a brain gland) regulates your body temperature, responding to internal and external stimuli and making adjustments to keep the body within one or two degrees of 98.6 degrees. The hypothalamus works with other parts of the body's temperature-regulating system, such as the skin, sweat glands, and blood vessels — the vents, condensers and heat ducts of your body's heating and cooling system."

Keith frowned.

"So when I am not with Shiro I am about two degrees colder?" he asked, grimacing.

The Holt sibling's jaws dropped.

"But then... I think I am sick," Keith said, gulping. "Sometimes I feel way over a hundred degrees," he admitted, fists fidgeting on his lap and looking down. "and sometimes I shiver when... well... I don't know how to put it. I think being near Shiro makes me sick. Can you be allergic to someone?"

"Technically you  _were_ allergic to him."

Matt elbowed his sister.

"I hope this _allergy_ won't affect Shiro in a negative way," she muttered, eyes glued to the blushing disaster gay in front of her.

"There's no way..." Matt was about to argue when Keith slammed his hands against his legs.

"If he makes me sick I have to stay away from him!" he said, a hint of resentment dripping from his voice.

Immediately, he stormed off the room.

"Oh quiznack," the siblings exclaimed.

"This is bad," Matt said.

"Really bad," she remarked. 

* * *

Shiro was not exactly loud or a dancer but this time, it seemed he wasn't even Shiro. Just a statue, not breathing, moving, blinking or giving a single hint of being alive. He might as well had short-cuited when Matt came in with the news. Pidge kept offering him water, but he neither declined nor accepted. Krolia was five seconds away from calling Allura, unsure of how to proceed. Lance had never been more uncomfortable in his entire life. 

Out of the blue, Shiro started to cough.

Pidge put the glass in his metallic hand while Matt patted him on the back.

Pidge's eyes widened in terror.

_Please, no._

Finally, the cough stopped and he could finally take a sip of water.

"I'm okay, It was the shock," he said as he placed the glass on the bench, right next to him.

Silence ruled with an iron fist.

"Seriously, I'm okay," Shiro said.

And then he noticed. No one was staring at him. All the eyes were glued to the glass of water. Specifically, to the red petal floating on top of it. The one that had not been there before Shiro's lips touched the glass. He was not okay.

He was paying the price of his past mistakes.

That was it, he was getting what he deserved.

Voices filled the room but he isolated them all, background noise to his monologue.

_Now you are the one who gets to be in pain._

_You brought this upon yourself._

He had been an idiot for years and when he came to his senses and realized he had loved his best friend since who knows when; then he had been erased from Keith's memories. He wanted to say it wasn't fair, but it was.

He was in love.

He was going to die.

"This is so sad, Alexa play despacito," he muttered, absently.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [HA, DID YOU REALLY BELIEVE THE QUOTE WOULD BE SITUATIONALLY FUNNY? ](https://paladorksinlove.tumblr.com)


	5. WELP

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NOT A CHAPTER

Okay so I hate how this turned out and I tried to fix it over ten times and I still hate the way I wrote this so honestly ??? fuck this one

 **I will be writing the end of the Hanahaki series** and the first chapter will be the same but it will actually have a plot, so if you are interested keep an eye out for 'Say Something', which I'll post once the week and midterms finish kicking my ass.

Sorry for taking so long to make a decision and not letting you know guys, it was a jerk move, I admit it. 

Anyways love y'all <3

**Author's Note:**

> [ I crave validation and aproval ~~because my parents don't give it to me~~ , anyways, be my friend ](https://gayestbat.tumblr.com)


End file.
